Timeline of History

British Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin causes a rift in American-British relations when he implies that President Truman's 1946 demand that 100,000 Jews be admitted to Palestine was issued solely for domestic political purposes. Bevin also claims that the demand has wrecked negotiations and undermined prospects for a peaceful settlement of the problem in Palestine.

According to Ernest Bevin, he had been informed that President Truman was about to make the statement and he responded:

"I went next morning to the secretary of state, Mr. Byrnes, and told him how far I had got [in negotiations] the day before and that I believed we were on the road, if only they would leave us alone.

I begged that the statement not be issued, but I was told that if it was not issued by Mr. Truman a competitive statement would be issued by Mr. (Thomas E.) Dewey."